Around the World in 80 Dishes: Belize

The famous author, Aldous Huxley, once observed, "[i]f the world had any ends, British Honduras would certainly be one of them. It is not on the way from anywhere to anywhere else. It is all but uninhabited." Huxley lived from 1894 to 1963; and, that parcel of land that he knew as British Honduras is known today as Belize.  That name came with the country's independence on September 21, 1981. 

The land known as "Mother Nature's Best Kept Secret" is located just south of the Yucatan peninsula in Central America.  It is a relatively small country, with only 8,867 square miles, which is just slightly smaller than than the State of New Hampshire.  It is also similar to New Hampshire in another respect: namely, smaller populations of people surrounded by large expanses of wilderness.  Belize is home to more than 5,000 species of plants and animals that call the area their home. 

Yet, the history of area is one marked by one particular species.  As early as 1,500 B.C., the Mayan civilzation settled in the area, establishing cities like Lamanai, Altun Ha, and Yalbac. In its late era, there were perhaps as many as one million Mayans living in the area that is present-day Belize. Yet, like the rest of Central America, Spanish conquistadors made their way through the area, claiming it for the Spanish Empire.  British pirates began to make the area their home, with the first permanent British settlement being established in 1716.  The land officially became part of the British empire around 1786.  It remained a part of that empire until its independence in 1981. 

What makes any country interesting is the cultures and people who reside within. The country of Belize is home to a mix of cultures, including Maya, Creoles, Garinagu (a mix of West African, Arawak and Carib Islander), Mestizos and even Mennonites. All of these cultures, as well as the others who live in Belize, have contributed to what could be defined as Belizean cuisine. Some commonalities can be found with Mexican or Central American cuisine, as well as Jamaican food. Yet, the cuisine of Belize retains its own identity. 

MAIN COURSE

For this personal culinary challenge, I am going to prepare Chimole, which is also known as "Black Dinner." It is a dish with roots in the both the Mayan and Metizo communities. It is a dish that was originally prepared by Mestizo families, traditionally on a Sunday. Chimole is a soup that is full of protein.  A whole chicken goes into the pot while the cook prepares pork meatballs to be added in toward the end of the cook.  There are also vegetables and other ingredients, such as a pepper, onion, and tomatoes, but they definitely play a secondary role to the meat.  As for the name "Black Dinner," that comes from the use of recado negro, a very smoky and spicy mixture made from ancho peppers and other spices. The mixture itself can be traced back to the Mayan civilization.

I tried to make both the recado negro and the Chimole.  I thought that my effort to make the spice mixture was going well, because I followed the recipe.  However, as the Chimole came together, it appeared that there was something missing.  The soup was not glack, but rather a deep, dark red. It was more like a recado rojo than a recado negro. I continued with the recipe, which produced the soup in the picture below. 

CHIMOLE

Recipe from International Cuisine

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1 chicken, divided

4 cloves garlic

1 pound of ground pork

3 hard boiled eggs (chopped into small pieces)

2 raw eggs

3 tablespoons of recado negro (see recipe below)
Salt
Pepper
1 bay leaf
2 tomatoes diced
1 bell pepper diced
1 onion diced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon thyme

Directions:
1.  Prepare the recado negro.  In a small bowl, add the recado negro with enough water so that it will dissolve (add the cumin as well).

2.  Prepare the pork.  In a separate bowl, mix the ground pork with the hard boil eggs and raw eggs, add salt and pepper to taste and thyme.  Form into small meatballs and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.

3.  Prepare the chicken.  Brown the chicken in garlic, and then put in a large pot. Add the recado liquid and fill the pot with water until the chicken is covered.  Add the diced tomatoes, diced peppers, diced onion and bay leaf and cook over medium high heat for 30 minutes.

4.  Finish the soup.  Add the meatballs and cook for 5 additional minutes.  To thicken the soup, add a little cornstarch mixed with water at the end.  Serve with rice or tortillas.

SPICE MIXTURE

A recado is a spice mixture that originagted with the Mayan people and is still used today by the peoples who live on the Yucatan peninsula and in Belize.  There are three types of recados: recado negro (or the black spice mix), recado rojo (or a red spice mix) and recado blanco (or a white spice mix).  

The recipe for chimole calls for the recado negro. This is a dark mixture that includes annatto seeds, cumin, oregano, cloves and allspice. The mixture is also know for s smoky and spicy flavors, which comes from the use of ancho chiles. As you may know, the ancho pepper is the dried form of the poblano pepper. In order to make recado negro, you have to grill the anchos much like you would roast a poblano pepper, that is, over a flame to char the outside. This roasting should be done outdoors because the roasting of an ancho pepper will produce smoke and a lot of it. 

RECADO NEGRO

Recipe from Mexican Authentic Recipes

Ingredients:

12 poblano/ancho peppers

1 garlic head

6 whole allspice berries

4 cloves

2 tablespoons of oregano

1 tablespoon of achiote seeds

1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds

1/2 cup of white vinegar

1/2 teaspoon of pepper

1/2 teaspoon of salt

Directions:

1.  Roast the peppers.  Discard the seeds from the ancho peppers.  Roast the peppers on the stove, directly over the fire until all of their sides are totally black.  Put the bowl and reserve.  Repeat the procedure for the remaining peppers.  Cover the roasted peppers with water and let them soak for about 10 minutes.  

2.  Toast the spices.  In a frying pan over high heat, add the allspice berries, cloves and cumin seeds.  Toast for about 1 minute until all ingredients are lightly toasted.  Transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a powder.  Reserve the powder.

3.  Blend the ingredients.  Transfer the ancho peppers to a blender and set aside.  Peel the garlic cloves and put them in the blender.  Also add the white vinegar, pepper and salt and blend all of the ingredients very well. 

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In the end, as I noted above, this personal culinary challenge did not produce a "black dinner."  More of a deep crimson dinner.  If a Belizean looked at my chimole, he or she would have thought I used a recado rojo rather than a recado negro. Upon reflection, I think that may have been due to the fact that I did not roast the peppers long enough to ensure that they were "totally black." Given anchos are dried poblanos, I was a little hesitant to let them go too long on the grill, lest I be left with charcoal. (I suppose if I had charcoal for anchos, that would have produced a black dinner.)  

I also struggled a little with the pork meatballs.  The use of 3 hard boiled eggs and 2 raw eggs produced a very wet mixture that was difficult to shape into small meatballs.  I think 1 less of each type of egg would have probably worked a little better in terms of getting the right consistency for the meatballs. 

In any event, the soup itself was delicious.  For my first time making this dish, I think that is all that really matters.  Until next time, 

ENJOY!

Around the World in 80 Dishes: Panama

I continue my personal culinary challenge, Around the World in 80 Dishes.  The next challenge takes me to the República de Panamá.   The name, "Panama," is supposedly derived from an Amerindian word that means "an abundance of fish."  One can understand why the land may have been known for its fish and other seafood because its shorelines grace both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.  This geography is reflected in Panamanian cuisine.  During my research, I came across a lot of recipes for ceviche.  The Panamanian version of ceviche usually involves marinating the fish in lime juice, celery and sometimes peppers.

While ceviche has its place on the Panamanian table, I wanted to know what else may be served during a typical Panamanian meal.  After all, Panama's agricultural sector involves the cultivation of many different tropical fruits, vegetables, and herbs, along with raising cattle, pigs and chicken.  This abundance is reflected in a variety of dishes.  Many of the dishes sound familiar, like tamales, ropa vieja and empanadas.  However, there are uniquely Panamanian dishes, such as carimañolas (ground yucca stuffed with ground meat) almojábana (corn-flour bread) and patacones (crispy chips of fried green plantains).

As the foregoing dishes suggests, Panamanian cuisine is influenced not only by the available ingredients (as are all cuisines), but also by an interesting mix of cultures and influences.  According to Every Culture, the largest demographic group in Panama are the interioranos, whose heritage is a mixture of Spanish and indigenous cultures.  There are also sizeable African and native communities, as well as populations of Italians, Greeks, Jews and Chinese.  All of these groups exert varying degrees of influence upon the dishes that are served in the restaurants and homes throughout Panama.

MAIN COURSE

For my challenge, I decided to make Sancocho, a type of chicken soup or stew.  The name comes from the Spanish word Sancochar, which means to parboil.  The dish itself is derived from cocido, a meat stew that is popular in central and northern Spain.  For example, in Madrid, you can find cocido madrileño, a stew consisting of, among other things, pork belly, chorizo, beef flank, bola (meatballs), chickpeas, potatoes, carrots and turnips.  As the Spanish explored and colonized the New World, they brought dishes like cocido, which took root amongst the local populace and evolved over time into dishes like sancocho.

As one could expect, many Latin American countries have some version of sancocho.  There are sancocho recipes from cooks in Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic. However, in Panama, sancocho or Sancocho de Gallina is the national dish.  It first originated in the peninsular region of Azuero in Southern Panama.  The dish spread throughout Panama, with regional variations emerging.  For example, in the town of La Chorrera (which is located east of the Azuero region), cooks make sancocho with free range chicken, onions, garlic, chili peppers, oregano and ñame (yams).  There is also Sancocho chiricano, which is a specialty from the Chiriqui Province in Eastern Panama.  This version is the heartiest.  It includes all of the ingredients for the basic sancocho and squash, which provides a yellowish color to the stew. 

The ingredients for the traditional Panamanian sancocho are simple and straightforward.  A free range chicken, along with ñame (yams) for flavor and texture, and culantro for flavor and color.  There is a list of other ingredients -- such as yuca, corn, onions, garlic, oregano, ñampí (taro) and otoe (a root vegetable) -- may also be used to make the stew.  Once prepared, sancocho is served with white rice on the side, which could be mixed into the stew or simply eaten alongside it. 

This is the version that will serve as my challenge.  I used most of the basic ingredients -- a free range chicken, ñame, and culantro (although I substituted the closely related cilantro), along with onions, garlic, corn and oregano.

SANCOCHO DE GALLINA

Recipe adapted from What's Cooking Panama

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

1 stewing hen (2-1/2 lb), cut in serving pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
4 tablespoons culantro, chopped (cilantro can be substituted)
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
2 tablespoons green pepper, chopped
2 lbs. ñame, peeled and chunked (potatoes or yams can be substituted)
2 inch section of corn on the cob for each serving (optional)
2 quarts (8 cups) of water or chicken stock
salt to taste

Directions:

1.  Stew the chicken.  Put chicken pieces into a stock pot with 2 quarts of water or chicken stock. Add onion, cilantro, oregano and green pepper. Cook for 1 hour. 

2.  Add the ñame (potatoes or yams).  Add salt to taste. Add ñame (yams) and cook until the ñame is tender. Add corn last 15 minutes of cooking. 

3.  Finish the dish.  Spoon the chicken and stew into bowls.  Serve with steamed rice on the side.

*     *     *

This culinary challenge represents the first one for Central America, which, until now, was the only region where I have not made a main course based upon a country's cuisine.  This challenge was relatively easy.  There were no complicated steps.  The most difficult part of this challenge is trying to culantro or ñame.  But, if you cannot find those ingredients, the substitutes of cilantro and potatoes or yams still help to make a very delicious soup.   Now, it is time to turn to the next challenge, and, only time will tell where it will take me.  Until then ...

ENJOY!